US killed 4 children, Syria claims

US airstrikes killed nine civilians including four children, the Syrian state news agency claimed yesterday.

It reported that stray missiles targeted at Shayrat airbase – said to be the launch pad for Tuesday’s gas attack – killed and wounded civilians a few miles away.

If true, this is embarrassing for President Trump, who justified the airstrike by talking of ‘beautiful babies cruelly murdered’ in the chemical attack blamed on the Syrian regime. The Sana news agency is, however, effectively a mouthpiece for Syrian leader Bashar al Assad, promoting his activities, denying any breaches of international law by his forces and attacking his enemies.

Last night there was no independent verification of the claim that US strikes killed and wounded civilians outside the airbase south of Homs.

But Assad’s office said: ‘What America did is nothing but foolish and irresponsible behaviour, which only reveals its short-sightedness and political and military blindness to reality.’